


Closely Knit

by IvyBlooms



Category: Naruto
Genre: Cute, Family, Fluff, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Papa Kakashi, Parental - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-05-20
Updated: 2014-10-14
Packaged: 2017-12-12 09:26:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 15,219
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/810000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IvyBlooms/pseuds/IvyBlooms
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kakashi hadn't wanted to be a squad leader. He was perfectly content with his life as a Jounin. But upon meeting his three little Genin students, he finds them to be far more endearing than he could have ever imagined. Finally, Kakashi has someone to care for. *Team 7 fluffy moments. Family relationships and hurt/comfort. No obvious pairings*</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story started out as a one-shot but I have since decided to continue it into a multi-chaptered fic. The first chapter may seem a bit out of place, random, or even unnecessary but just think of it as an introductory chapter/prologue.   
> And with that, happy reading :)

Kakashi had always prided himself on his lack of emotional connection to other human beings. He had no ties, no real ties at least. His friendship towards Gai was perhaps the only relationship that Kakashi could write off as a connection, and even that one was strained and weak. Kakashi had lost his own family long ago and his only living teammate was Rin, whom had given up the shinobi life to become a mother and housewife.

Kakashi saw her from time to time around the village, but they mostly kept their distance. Kakashi knew his face was just a painful reminder for her. A reminder of the tragic loss that both of them had experienced. While Kakashi had buried himself further into his shinobi training, Rin dropped out of the program shortly after and married a construction worker, proceeding to then pop out three kids.

Kakashi was happy for his former friend. She seemed relatively content with her new life and Kakashi knew that Rin had always wanted to be a mother. Now she was and he was so relieved that she had found peace.

Kakashi hadn't been so lucky. He chose to remain in the shinobi life, fully knowing what that meant. Kakashi worked on teams after that but he always made sure to keep his distance, never becoming friends or bonding with them. He always put up a cold wall and made sure to keep the probing humans at bay. It was better this way, easier for all involved.

And Kakashi assumed it would always be this way. Always alone, always a solitary creature. And he had accepted that a long time ago. But when he became an instructor, a team leader, Kakashi had worried. He knew he could not simply put up a cold front anymore; he couldn't simply do his job and go home. These were children. Yes, children. Children that were being entrusted to him to mold and care for. Kakashi wasn't sure if he was ready for such a task. But the third Hokage had been stern with his decision in making Kakashi an instructor, so he could not argue.

When Kakashi had met the team he was assigned, they weren't much. They really were just children. Naïve, simple, young, creatures that had no idea of the sort of world that they were stepping into.

Sakura, the girl, was the most naïve of them all. Pink haired and green eyed, she was as sweet as candy. She had a giggle that reminded Kakashi of bells chiming in the spring air, and an image of Rin was painted in his mind. Yes, she reminded him so much of Rin. A simple girl, with simple goals and a crazy crush on a certain boy. She was the mirror image of his former teammate and it made him quake internally.

Then there was the Uchiha boy. Oh yes, he was the most interesting of the three. His eyes were sharp and deadly, full of anger and hate. This boy reminded Kakashi of himself at that age. Such a ball of venom that anyone who tried to get close would surely be poisoned. Yes, this boy was as rough as they came.

Lastly, there was the yellowed haired, loud mouth. Oh, Kakashi knew exactly who this boy was. Everyone who hadn't been living under a rock for the past thirteen years knew who this boy was. Naruto Uzumaki. The trouble maker that always had Iruka complaining in the staff room, albeit with an affectionate undertone. Kakashi had heard all the stories that his much younger co-worker had to share on this child. While Kakashi had found himself smiling and amused at most of boy's antics, he knew such mischief would not get him far in the shinobi world and would likely get the boy killed. The boy had barely graduated from the academy according to his academic records. Kakashi had his work cut out with that one.

This was certainly going to interesting.

XXXX

Kakashi found working with the three genin to not be as torturous as he'd originally thought. They actually provided a source of amusement and joy in his ordinarily dull life. Especially the small rivalry that had formed between his two male charges.

"You asshole! I was doing just fine without you!" Naruto shrieked angrily.

Sasuke rolled his eyes in exasperation, twirling his kunai at the end of his index finger. "You nearly cracked your head open. But you're right, next time I'll just let your ass fall. Then I won't have to listen to your screeching."

Kakashi watched with a small grin, though no one would have known, from the far side of the training field. He wasn't exactly sure what had happened, as he'd been very intently studying his "novel", but it really didn't matter at that point. The two had already hit their boiling points.

Naruto had a fist full of Sasuke's shirt, and pulled the boy to him. "You want to repeat that?!"

"Naruto!" Sakura cried at the sudden violence from the blonde. "Let go of him!"

Kakashi had to admit he was mildly surprised by Naruto's violent action. The blonde was usually a very peaceful child and his "fights" with Sasuke had been little more than playful banter before now. Kakashi had never had to intervene before but now he saw he had no choice.

Appearing, as if by magic, behind him, Kakashi gripped the back of Naruto's jump suit and yanked him backwards, away from the raven haired boy. Naruto instantly released Sasuke and instead balled his fist and made an attempt to strike at his sensei.

Kakashi was so shocked by this that he had almost allowed the little brat to get away with it. Almost.

Kakashi grabbed that fist with his free hand and twisted it behind the blonde's back, holding it there. "Naruto." He spoke firmly. "Stop this at once."

It took a few seconds, but finally the boy seemed to have calmed down and was only panting. Kakashi released the boy's arm and turned to this other charges, who had been staring with wide eyes at Naruto, both equally as shocked by the behavior.

"Training is over for the day." Kakashi announced. "We'll meet back here tomorrow at noon."

Sasuke looked as if he were about to protest but Sakura grabbed his hand, causing him to meet her eyes. The two seemed to share silent conversation before leaving together. This now left Kakashi and his little burden.

Kakashi let the fabric of Naruto's jacket slip from his fingers, watching as the boy not so gracefully plopped on his butt. Kakashi waited but the boy did not move. Finding this behavior even stranger, Kakashi decided to move him.

The sensei reached down and gently turned the boy to face him. "Naruto." Kakashi called his attention. "Naruto, look at me."

Naruto was still for a moment before tilting his head upward to meet his sensei's eye. Kakashi noticed wetness in those electrifying blue eyes and it immediately alarmed him. Was this boy crying?!

"Naruto, what's the matter? This behavior isn't like you." Kakashi questioned, trying to stay away from the topic of those wet eyes.

Naruto pushed his lower lip out in a pout and remained silent.

Kakashi let out a long sigh before sitting down across from the blonde. "You've never attacked Sasuke before." Kakashi recalled. "I'm concerned. The occasional disagreement among teammates is fine and normal, but when they turn violent people can get hurt." He explained. "When you're on a mission, a squad must be in tune with one another. They must always have each other's backs and be able to help each other, despite earlier quarrels. A squad must be able to work together."

"I know." Naruto spat. "He just annoys me."

"Sasuke." Kakashi guessed. "Why?"

Naruto sighed and folded his arms across his chest. "He's such a show off! I mean, I know I'm not that good and stuff, but he doesn't have to always rub it in!"

Ah, Kakashi saw what the problem was now. "Naruto." He said soothingly, reaching forward he pulled the boy to his chest. "Sasuke may be talented in certain aspects of being a shinobi, but you are just as talented."

Naruto sighed in relief at the gentle arms around him. "Yeah, right."

"No no, I swear. Would I lie about something like this?" Kakashi could tell his young charge was contemplating the odds and he chuckled. "I wouldn't, trust me. Do you want me to tell you some of the things that you're good at?"

Naruto was quiet for a second before nodding his head against the jounin's chest. "Well, let's start out with the obvious. Your shadow clones. Naruto, that is a highly advanced technique. Have you ever seen Sasuke whip out any shadow clones?" Naruto shook his head. "Neither have I. And what about your perseverance and determination to become Hokage?"

"Sasuke has determination too." Naruto grumbled sourly.

"Oh, sure he does." Kakashi admitted. "But not like you. Your determination is completely different. Yours is fueled by your desire to better yourself and others. You want to help people, not just yourself."

"Are you saying Sasuke's determination is selfish?" Naruto asked innocently.

Kakashi had to pause and think about that for a moment. Was it selfish? To seek revenge? Perhaps in some people's eyes, but not his. Because he understood. "No, not necessarily. But yours has a far more gentle nature to it. And that is something to be admired, Naruto. It is something that I admire about you."

Naruto looked up at his mentor and his blue eyes sparkled. "Really Sensei?! You admire me?"

Kakashi chuckled. "I admire your determination, Naruto." He clarified.

Naruto pouted again but as he hid a smile beneath. "Thank you, Sensei." He whispered against the man's chest.

Kakashi sighed and rubbed the boy's back. "Anytime, little one. But next time you need reassurance, don't attack Sasuke. I'm afraid he might beat your face should you grab him like that again."

Naruto chuckled. "Yeah, probably."

XXXX

Another aspect of having these children around that Kakashi enjoyed was never having to dine alone. Whenever the team met for training, Kakashi always made sure to treat them to a meal afterwards or before. It was the least he could do for all the hard work they put in, and Kakashi had plenty of money to spare. He didn't have any kids of his own and he so rarely spent his money on anything luxurious. He was happy to spend it on these children.

"Oh, oh! Let's get ramen!" Naruto suggested brightly for the fifth time that week.

Sakura stuck her tongue out in disgust. "We had ramen last night, Naruto! And do you have any idea how fattening that stuff is?!"

Naruto scoffed at that and waved his hand, dismissing the notion. "I don't care how fattening it is. It's delicious!"

"And that's exactly why he won't make it past a genin. He'll be too fat to be a shinobi." Sasuke teased.

Naruto gave the other boy a sharp glare. "Ramen doesn't make people fat! Not working it off afterwards makes you fat!" Naruto pinched his flat stomach as proof. "See?! I've eaten ramen my entire life and I don't have ounce of fat!"

Kakashi chuckled at the blonde and patted his head. "Now Naruto, we had ramen last night. Why don't we let Sakura choose where we will be dining tonight? Sasuke chose the night before and I the night before that." Kakashi explained his reasoning to the hyper blonde.

"Oh, yeah. Where do you want to eat Sakura?" Naruto asked politely.

Sasuke nodded approvingly to the girl.

Sakura's eyes widened like a frightened deer and her cheeks turned pink. "Um…well, there's this little sushi shop that I like…"

"It's decided then!" Kakashi clapped his hands. "We will be having sushi tonight!"

Naruto cheered, just happy that they'd finally decided so he could fill his grumbling belly. Sasuke gave a grunt of approval and shoved his hands back into his pockets.

Together, the four headed over the designated shop. The squad ate their fill of the flavorful rolls, but Kakashi noticed an odd silence from Sakura. Usually the girl was very animated during their meals, talking up a storm and engaging in conversation with both Sasuke and Naruto. But tonight, she seemed rather withdrawn and quiet. The sensei was considering confronting her on it but unsure of what exactly to say. So he let it slide and decided perhaps she was just feeling a bit under the weather. If this persisted, he would bring it up at a later time.

XXXX

The next day during training, Sakura appeared to be back to normal. She scolded Naruto for recklessly throwing his kunai in her direction and she followed Sasuke around like a lost puppy, offering advice where she could and taking it when it was given.

For the first two hours, everything went by smoothly and Kakashi sat off to the side, simply watching and enjoying the learning process that the children were going through. However, shortly after lunch, things took a turn for the dramatic.

Kakashi had sent the kids off to practice their chakra control in the forest. He figured that they would be alright for a few minutes while he gathered up his things to follow. He should have known better.

A loud scream echoed from the inside of the forest and Kakashi instantly dropped everything and ran inside. That was a definite female shriek. Sakura.

Kakashi was met halfway by his squad. Sasuke had Sakura cradled in his arms with Naruto right beside him, staring worriedly down at the girl.

"What happened?" Kakashi demanded as Sasuke transferred the girl into his arms.

Sasuke explained. "The branch she was on broke. I guess it was rotted because the second she landed, it snapped. I tried to catch her but I wasn't fast enough." Sasuke added with a bitter tone.

Kakashi kneeled down and sat the girl in soft grass below. "Sakura? What did you land on?"

Sakura's cheeks were painted a deep pink, clearly embarrassed by her tumble. "M-my ankle." She stuttered, a definite quiver in her voice.

"Alright. Let's have a look." Kakashi soothed gently. He could already tell that her ankle was at the very least sprained. It was swollen twice its size and was beginning to turn a light purple.

The sensei slowly slipped off her shoe, doing his best to avoid jolting the tender area. The girl let out a tiny whimper and Kakashi smiled at her reassuringly. "Just let me have a look at it and then you can get home to rest." The girl nodded and Kakashi continued.

He lifted the foot into his lap and examined it visually first. Definitely sprained. Maybe broken. Kakashi gently pressed against the swollen appendage and sighed. It was broken.

"Welp," Kakashi started. "you're probably not going to like this." Sakura stared at him, waiting. "Looks like you've got yourself a broken ankle here."

Sakura's green eyes widened and she teared up. "B-broken?"

Kakashi nodded. "Yup. You're going to have to be off that for at least a few weeks."

"But what about training?" Sakura cried out.

"You will still attend." Kakashi reassured. "But you won't be doing any physical training. I'll have you focus on chakra control and meditation."

Sakura's face twisted as if the mere suggestion was too horrifying to comprehend. "But…can't we get a healer to fix it up?"

"Of course. But the healers can only do so much, Sakura. Too much interference with the natural healing process could wind up doing more harm than good." Kakashi explained patiently to the pink haired child.

"So…." Naruto butted in. "She'll be alright?"

Kakashi smiled at the boy. "She'll be fine."

Kakashi gathered Sakura up into his arms and proceeded back to the village hospital where a proper healer could take a look. Kakashi sat in the waiting room with the boys and took to reading his novel. After an hour, Kakashi turned to his male charges.

"It's getting late. Perhaps you should head home. I can wait here and make sure Sakura gets home alright." Kakashi offered, noticing the very audible grumble from the blonde's stomach.

Naruto shook his head and adamantly refused. "No, I'll wait. We're a team and we have to stick together, especially if one of our teammates is injured."

Sasuke nodded in agreement and leaned back in the uncomfortable plastic chair.

"I'll treat you all to dinner after this is done." Kakashi said with a proud smile beneath his mask. "Poor Sakura has certainly earned it."

Just then, a petit nurse appeared at the door with a clipboard in hand. "I need the guardian of Sakura Haruno please." She announced.

Kakashi along with the two boys stood immediately and approached the woman.

"I'm her sensei." Kakashi explained at the bewildered expression he received. "I'm the one who brought her in."

"Oh, right. Well, she definitely has a broken ankle. She'll have to stay off of it for at least two weeks. No physical training for three weeks and even then it's advised that she take it easy. We don't want to strain it." The nurse explained.

Kakashi nodded. "Right. Thank you. May we take her home now?"

The nurse nodded and motioned for the group to follower her beyond the door to a back room. The small group found the pink haired teammate, with a bandaged foot, sitting on a bed with a set of crutches leaning against the wall. She was staring intently at her foot before noticing the added company.

"Oh!" She said in shock. "You guys didn't have to wait. I could have gotten home on my own."

Kakashi shook his head at the humble child. "Nonsense. What sort of sensei, or human being, would I be if I left my injured student to fare for herself."

Sakura blushed but gave a tiny grin as she was handed the crutches by the nurse. "Now, you remember what I said." The nurse ordered sternly. "I know how you shinobi are. So damn dedicated to your training that you just wind up harming yourselves."

Sakura chuckled but nodded. "I promise, I'll stay off it."

The four exited the hospital in a relatively joyful mood. Despite the long day, none of them were really prepared to return home, especially Sasuke and Naruto whom had no one to return home to, so Kakashi brought up his earlier promise.

"Let's grab something to eat before you youngsters go home." Kakashi said. "It's been a long day and I'm starving."

Both Naruto and Sasuke visibly brightened at the mention of food, albeit Naruto was a bit more vocal in his joy. The only one who didn't seem quite as pleased was the limping Sakura.

"O-oh, um, I should probably get home. My mother will want to know what happened to me and…" She trailed off.

Kakashi smiled at the girl. "I've already sent word to your mother on the accident. She isn't expecting you home for another hour or so."

Not accepting any further argument, Kakashi led his little ones to the closest eatery. A small, family owned steak house that Kakashi had seen Asuma's team frequenting often. The team was seated at a booth in the corner and was served a free plateful of beef kabobs.

"We always give a complimentary dish to our shinobi." The waitress said with a smile. "It's the least we can do for all the hard work you guys put in."

"You're too kind." Kakashi offered as he helped himself to a kabob.

The waitress giggled and pulled out a small notepad. "What can I get you all?"

"Oh oh! I want the steak and potatoes!" Naruto said with sparkling blue eyes, mouth practically watering at the prospect of devouring the juicy slab of meat.

"I'll have the beef tenderloin with beans." Sasuke droned smoothly.

Kakashi glanced over the menu and gave the young woman a dazzling smile, though only the thin outline was visible through the face mask. "I'll have another order of these delicious beef kabobs with a side of potatoes and baked beans please."

The waitress blushed madly and scribbled down the order before meeting Sakura's eyes. "And you sweetie?"

Sakura seemed a bit distraught at the question. She frantically eyed the menu before gulping. "I'll just have a glass of water please."

The waitress was bewildered. "Are you sure honey?"

Kakashi eyed the girl skeptically. "Sakura, you haven't eaten anything since lunch. You should have at least a little something."

Sakura shook her head and placed the menu back in its holder. "I'm really fine, Kakashi-sensei." She insisted. "I'm not hungry."

"Sakura! How can you not be hungry after all that's happened today?!" Naruto cried in complete confusion. "I'm starving!"

"Because not everyone has a bottomless pit for a stomach like you do." Sasuke offered as a rebuke. But he turned to Sakura, who sat beside him. "But you really should eat something. It won't do you any good if you don't keep your strength up."

Kakashi nodded in agreement. "Sasuke's right. Why not have some kabobs?"

Sakura's twitched nervously in her seat but finally offered a reluctant nod. "Alright."

It didn't take long for the orders to be placed about the table in front of the proper customers. Naruto began digging in immediately while Kakashi and Sasuke chose to eat at a mildly slower pace. Sakura, however, took to simply picking at her meat and staring at the plate sullenly.

"Is something wrong with the food?" Kakashi asked after everyone else had finished their meals.

Sakura shook her head. "No, just not that hungry."

Kakashi reached across the table and pressed his palm to the young girl's forehead. "Hm, no fever."

Sakura backed away from the hand and sighed. "I'm just not hungry, that's all. I'm fine."

Sasuke eyed the girl for a long moment before saying "Is it because of what happened today? You know that branch didn't break 'cause of your weight, right?"

Sakura's entire face went from pink to bright red in an instant. She made a tiny gasp and hid her face in her hands.

Naruto couldn't help but gape at his teammate. Even he knew that you never mentioned a woman's weight around her.

Kakashi sighed at Sasuke's tactless comment, even if he was only trying to make the young girl feel better. It was a very well-known fact that mentioning a female's weight, looks, or body type was taboo for men. It would likely result in them losing a very important part of their anatomy.

"What I believe Sasuke meant to say, was that the branch was already rotted. It wasn't you fault that it snapped." Kakashi tried to smooth over the humiliation that his young charge now clearly felt.

When it was obvious that the girl wasn't going to uncurl herself from the corner of the booth, Kakashi decided to take charge of the situation. "Naruto, Saskue, would you mind waiting outside? We'll join you in a moment."

The two boys didn't hesitate to speed out of the restaurant, both knowing how volatile women, especially Sakura, could be.

Once the boys were safely out of the way, Kakashi smiled softly at the girl. "Sakura, you are not fat." He said blatantly. "You are not anywhere near being overweight, I promise. You are perfect for your height and body type. You all had to have physical examinations before graduating from the Academy. You are perfectly healthy in all aspects."

Sakura stared down at her untouched food before mumbling. "I'm not as skinny as Ino."

Kakashi studied his student before contemplating how to continue. "I don't usually divulge such personal information about people to my students but I'll let you in on a little secret, ok?" Kakashi leaned in across the table and whispered, "Asuma-sensei actually is working with Ino so that she'll put on more weight."

Sakura's eyes widened and her head snapped up in surprise. "Really?!"

"Oh yes. Apparently Miss Ino is actually underweight and it is having an impact on her overall health and shinobi eligibility." When Kakashi saw his student thinking hard on the new information, he added. "Now, you can't tell anyone that you know about this. This is very personal information and I don't think Asuma would appreciate knowing that I released such delicate information about one of his pupils."

Sakura nodded vigorously. "Of course I won't. Even if I don't like Ino, I would never talk about serious things like that."

Kakashi nodded approvingly and patted the girl's hand. "Now that we have that settled. What do you say we order a fresh plate of kabobs for you. I'm sure you must be starving."

Sakura smiled and Kakashi put in the order.

"Oh, but wait!" Sakura interrupted as the waitress bounced away with the order. "What about Naruto and Sasuke? Aren't they waiting outside?"

Kakashi chuckled. "We'll consider this a team building exercise." Kakashi fondly eyed his two male pupils through the window. He could see the two were trying not to kill each other.

Sakura laughed and Kakashi gave her hair a soft ruffle.

XXXX

Kakashi led his three youngsters out to a small lake located at the heart of Konoha. Kakashi enjoyed this sparkling puddle of water, as it reminded him of his childhood. He loved to come out and simply watch the splashing tides of the water, and stick his toes in the chilly liquid. And he was feeling nostalgic today, so with nothing else to do and no training session scheduled, he'd sent a messenger hawk to his charges and asked them to meet him at the lake for a day of relaxation.

"So, what exactly is the point of coming here?" Naruto asked dully.

Kakashi patted the blonde's head. "For relaxation, Naruto. Honestly, even ninjas have to take a break once in a while."

Sakura peered out over the shimmering surface and smiled brightly. "It's beautiful! I remember coming here when I was really little. My parents and I would go swimming!"

Sasuke remained quiet as he stared at the blue water. He did not seem nearly as impressed as his teammate.

"Well, I don't mind relaxing, I guess." Naruto sighed as a breeze blew through his rebellious spikes. "I'm still sore from yesterday."

Kakashi chuckled and set down the small basket that he had been carrying along. He had stopped at the convenient store to pick up some things that would be appropriate for a lakeside picnic.

"Kakashi-sensei, are we just going to do nothing?" Sasuke asked blatantly. "Is there going to be any training involved?"

Kakashi smiled at his fiery pupil and patted him on the head. "Yes, actually. We are practicing the fine art of relaxation. So sit down and get to work."

Sasuke didn't seem to find "relaxing" as an appropriate use of his time. He gave a huff and plopped down on the checkered blanket that Kakashi laid out.

Sakura kicked off her shoes and dipped her toes in the sparkling water and Naruto soon joined her at the edge. Sasuke choose to sulk and watch his teammates enjoy the cool water.

"Why not go have a little fun, Sasuke." Kakashi suggested to the youth. "We will resume regular training tomorrow."

"I can't afford to lose precious time for such childish nonsense." The boy snapped back. "I need to train to get stronger!"

Kakashi observed the young whelp for a moment before saying. "Overtraining is sometimes the downfall of even the most skilled ninja." He explained promptly. "If you exhaust yourself, what good is all that training if you're too tired and weak to put it to use, hm?"

Sasuke's black eyes narrowed at his mentor but he remained silent, and instead stomped off to join Sakura and Naruto at the lake's edge. Kakashi suspected it was more because he had angered the boy and less because Sasuke had suddenly discovered hidden festive spirit.

Kakashi watched the children out of the corner of his eye as he set out the meal that he had packed. He hadn't gone too over the top but he had made sure to pick up plenty for everyone to have seconds. After all, they were still growing adolescents.

"Hey, Sakura! Watch this!" Naruto cried out exuberantly as he flicked a stone across the surface.

Sakura watched in awe as the stone tapped the water a grand total of five times before sinking into the depths below. "Wow! That's actually pretty cool."

Naruto gave a dorky smile, proud that he'd finally been able to impress the source of his ever growing affections. "You should give it a try!" He offered a smooth stone to the girl. "Go on, Sakura. I bet yours can go even farther."

Sakura blushed at the encouragement and without further thought, whipped the stone as hard as she could over the lake. Much to her dismay, it only met the surface twice before sinking. However, it had indeed traveled father than Naruto's.

"Good job, Sakura!" Naruto cheered.

Sasuke watched from behind the two. He curled his lip at the loud voice of his blonde teammate and butt in scathingly. "That was pathetic. You can't even properly skip stones, either of you. Why don't you just stop embarrassing yourselves."

Sakura reeled back as if she'd just been delivered a harsh blow and Naruto's eyes burned with fury.

"Hey, asshole! You don't have to be mean to Sakura!" Naruto snarled. He didn't care that Sasuke insulted him but when he took shots at Sakura, that was unacceptable.

Sasuke shrugged his shoulders. "It's not my fault if she's too oversensitive."

Sakura's jade eyes suddenly became very shiny as she turned and scurried away.

Naruto reached out to stop her but his attempt was halted as Sasuke proceeded to shove him, hard, straight into the lake.

At the loud splash that resounded, Kakashi turned his attention back to the three students. Only there appeared to only be one standing there now. Immediately suspicious, Kakashi approached Sasuke, ready to question him on the whereabouts of the other two, when suddenly a very wet blonde burst through the surface of the water and sputtered in complete horror.

"H-how dare you, asshole!" He shouted.

Kakashi quickly reached in and pulled his student out from the water and set him on his feet. "Naruto, are you alright?" He asked, checking over the boy for any injuries.

Naruto shook out his blonde spikes and Kakashi's face was instantly soaked. "I'm fine, but that asshole is about to lose his damned hands!"

Kakashi grabbed the blonde as he leapt at the raven, fully aware that he was about to try and rip the other's face clean off. As a mentor, that could not be allowed. "Naruto, you go dry yourself off. I brought a spare towel in the basket just for instances like this one."

Naruto's eyes widened in complete shock and he protested loudly. "You aren't honestly going to let him off?! He was mean to Sakura and then he shoved him in the water!"

Kakashi grabbed Naruto firmly by the shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "You don't need to worry. I will deal with Sasuke. Now go do as I said."

Naruto definitely wanted to continue arguing, worrying that the sensei would go easy on the prodigy, but he knew that tone of voice, so he instead obeyed and made his way back to the picnic sight.

With Naruto out of the way, Kakashi grabbed Sasuke by the arm and dragged him over to a shaded tree where he then proceeded to, none-too-gently, sit the boy down at the base of the trunk. He gave the boy a hard look before deciding to question his motives.

"May I ask why you pushed Naruto into the lake and sent Sakura running off in tears?" Kakashi asked calmly. He wasn't one for being a firm authority figure but sometimes it was necessary. Especially when his charges started hurting one another.

Sasuke pursed his lips and looked away, refusing to answer.

At the lack of response, Kakashi reached down and grabbed his chin, forcing him to look Kakashi dead in the eye. "Maybe I wasn't making myself clear before when I said before that teammates don't hurt each other? Physically or otherwise."

Sasuke glared back with a fire deep in his eyes. Kakashi had to admit he was mildly surprised by the conviction behind that feisty appearance. Though he really shouldn't have been, given the boy's usual temperament.

"Fine." Kakashi relented, releasing the boy's chin. "Until you are ready to be an active member of this team and apologize for your wrong doings, you are hereby suspended from training, group missions or any other sort of squad activity."

There was the reaction Kakashi had been hoping for. He watched closely as the raven's eyes widened and those pale cheeks turned a furious red.

"You can't do that!" He yelled angrily.

Kakashi kneeled down in front of the boy and raised an index finger in the air as if pointing to something obvious. "Actually, I can. It is a squad leader's duty to maintain discipline among his or her pupils and if that means suspending a rowdy one until they get their act together, then it is perfectly within our rights to do so."

"Y-you…I'm going to complain to the Hokage!"

Kakashi chuckled and ruffled the snarly child's hair. "You do that and let me know how it goes."

And with that, the sensei left the insolent child under the tree and returned to his other two students who were in need of reassuring.

XXXX

Naruto nursed a sore ego as he wiped his face off with the towel that he'd found in the basket. He totally would not have fallen in if he hadn't been preoccupied with chasing after Sakura. Not that he was blaming her of course. He should have been more alert.

"Goodness, what happened to you?"

Naruto peered up and found Sakura standing over him with a bewildered expression. "O-oh! Sakura, are you alright?!" The blonde jumped up and flung the towel over his shoulder, trying to give the appearance of nonchalance.

"I'm fine." Sakura said softly, though there was a tiny waver in her voice. "But what happened? You're soaking wet."

Naruto glanced down at his sad appearance and gave a small chuckle. "Well, I may have taken a little tumble into the lake after you left."

Sakura studied the boy with hard eyes before sighing. "Sasuke pushed you in, didn't he?"

Naruto gave a sigh as well as he plopped back down on the blanket. "Yeah. He's in a mood today. But don't you listen to anything he said, Sakura. He had no right to talk to you like that."

Sakura was silent before giving a grateful smile. "Thank you, Naruto."

"Alright, how about we sit down at eat." Kakashi announced as he rejoined his two pupils.

Naruto raised his eyebrow at the apparent absence of their other team member. "Where's the asshole?"

Kakashi gave the boy a light whap on his hand. "Language. And he's been suspended from squad activities until further notice."

Sakura's mouth gaped open at that. "Y-you suspended Sasuke?" She gasped as if it were a ridiculous notion that the boy should face disciplinary measures.

Kakashi nodded and popped open the gallon of lemonade, pouring out equal amounts into three cups. "That's what happens when you act like a brat on my squad."

Naruto gave a smile of approval and began gulping down his share of beverage. Sakura still seemed a tad shaken by the information but she sprawled out across the blanket and joined in the sweet drink.

Kakashi laid out on his back and watched as a few clouds floated overhead. It truly was the perfect day to just relax and enjoy his little ones. It was perfect for a nap as well…

Kakashi felt himself slowly drifting off as a soft breeze blew through his hair. He sensed his young charges settling down as well and starting to doze, which only furthered encouraged him to join them. And so he did.

XXXX

After a sufficient amount of time, Sasuke finished his pouting and glanced back where he saw his sensei and team members stretched out across the blanket and enjoying the day. In retrospect, he supposed he really had been a brat, and rude. He hadn't really meant to snap at Sakura and he supposed that pushing Naruto into the lake was uncalled for. He would apologize. It was what a true shinobi would do. A true ninja always admitted when they were wrong and took responsibility for their actions.

Sasuke took a deep breath and mentally prepared himself for the bruised pride that would come along with such an act.

Sasuke took the walk over very slowly, stopping to study a ladybug crawling on a blade of grass or particularity interesting rock specimen. Finally, he did manage to drag himself over to the group. However, when he got close enough to really take a look…they were all asleep!

Kakashi lay stretched out in a crescent shape while both Naruto and Sakura nuzzled up to him like a pair of pups. While Sasuke's initial reaction was annoyance that they had all just drifted off without him, he soon found himself joining them.

He squeezed in between his two team members and nudged his head up against Kakashi's firm belly. The actions caused said mentor to grunt and open his one eye.

"Ah, look who decided to rejoin the group." He said affectionately, pulling his fingers through the smooth hair. "Can I help you, little raven?"

Sasuke sighed at the soft fingers which carded through his locks. It'd been so long since someone had done that for him. "I wanted to apologize for my behavior, sensei." Sasuke grumbled. "It was very immature and un-ninja like."

Kakashi nodded and gave the boy's pale cheek a pat of reassurance. "I'm glad to hear it." The mentor glanced down at the other two students that were curled up around him. "You can apologize to these two once they wake up."

"I didn't mean to push him in the water, Sensei." Sasuke explained lamely. "I didn't mean to make Sakura cry either."

Kakashi continued pulling his fingers through the hair and watched as those black eyes began to flutter lazily. "I know you didn't. It's hard coming back to a place with such intense memories though."

Sasuke peered up at his mentor with a questioning gaze. "How do you know?"

Kakashi chuckled. "I'd spoken to Fugaku on many occasions. He told me about how Itatchi would bring you here to practice the fire justsu." Kakashi's voice softened. "I know it must be hard for you to return with such memories."

Sasuke shrugged his shoulders and closed his eyes completely this time. "All wounds heal with time."

"Not all, my young one. Some wounds can never heal, no matter how much time is given. But…" Kakashi gave a pregnant pause as he pulled Naruto and Sakura closer to him. "Sometimes they can be soothed and numbed by those who surround us. Those who care about us and support us no matter what."

Sasuke was silent and for a moment Kakashi thought he'd fallen asleep. But he spoke once more. "Do you think they'll forgive me? I was pretty awful to Sakura."

Kakashi chuckled fondly. "I haven't a doubt in my mind that they will welcome you back with open arms once you give them a sincere apology."

Sasuke gave a smile and nodded before finally dropping off with the other two.

Kakashi sighed contently and closed his eye as well, rejoining his pupils in the world of dreams.


	2. Mission: Escort

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beta'd by: Bleach-ed-Na-tsu

"We have a mission." Kakashi announced one morning after he'd led his pupils through two hours of vigorous exercise. Currently the three Genin were sprawled out on the warm grass, panting as if they'd just sprinted across the entirety of Suna's vast desert. Honestly, he was going to have to work them into shape if they were this winded after some simple agility training.

The mention of a mission however, seemed to perk up the loudest of his group. Naruto's breath halted before he shot up into a sitting position, smile nearly blinding as he bounced slightly with bottled excitement.

"A mission?! What kind of mission?! It better not be another stupid D Rank where have to walk that stupid lady's cat again. That thing is demonic." He added quickly, remembering the great amount of bloody scratches he received the other week from Mrs. Tanaka's prized cat, Taiki.

Kakashi chuckled and patted the blonde's ever growing spikes. "I think you'll be quite happy to know that this a C rank escort mission. We will be leaving tomorrow morning to escort Prince Hirohito back to his home in Iwa, along with his personal servants."

Sasuke's attention was caught apparently as he too pulled himself up from his relaxed position in the grass. He raised a skeptical eyebrow at his sensei and asked, "Isn't that ranked a bit low for escorting someone as important as a prince?"

Kakashi smiled at the young Uchiha and nodded. "Prince Hirohito is the fourth son to the royal Akiyama family. He is quite young and mostly unknown to anyone outside of Iwa therefore the Hokage thought a single four-man squad would be sufficient for the job."

Sasuke nodded wiped the sweat from his brow, glaring distastefully at his damp hand. Clearly he was disappointed at how easily tired out he was, and a dark determination set into his charcoal eyes. Kakashi grinned and turned to Sakura, who had also sat herself up and stared up expectantly.

Naruto scoffed still and threw himself back into the grass, now taking to staring up into the clear skies. "C rank is nothing!" He whined. "I refuse to accept anything below a B."

Kakashi chuckled at his young one's petulance and turned into full out laughter when Sakura gave the boy a sturdy punch in the arm that likely, come morning, would be sporting a nice bruise.

"You don't get to pick and choose the missions that the Hokage assigns. They're assignments for a reason." She stated very matter of fact. "Besides, a C rank is the highest mission that a Genin can be assigned so you're just going to have to suck it up."

Naruto's lower lips jutted out into a rather adorable pout. "But a C rank mission is so beneath us. I think we could at least take on a B rank…I'm not asking for an S rank or anything."

Kakashi smiled at his impatient blonde and ruffled his spikes once more, pulling a reluctant grin from the disappointed ninja. "Don't be so quick to take on higher ranked mission, Naruto. With higher ranks comes more responsibility and independence. As much as I think you've all grown, I would not accept a mission higher than a C rank and that's nothing to be ashamed of. Besides, this mission, despite its rank, is extremely important. Insuring the safety of the Prince will greatly impact not only our relationship with Iwa but also with its royal families. The Prince's family provides Konoha with endless supplies of marble and other precious stones which are hard to come by here. Losing favor with the Akiyama family would be most troublesome to our village."

Naruto's disappointment seemed to instantly evaporate and was soon replaced by glee. "So…this is really important to the village then? I had no idea we were so dependent on them."

"Well, the jewelers and carpenters are at least." Kakashi chuckled at the child's sudden enthusiasm.

"How long will we be gone?" Sakura asked.

Kakashi turned to the young lady. "Unfortunately due to the age of the prince and method of travel, it will likely be at least two weeks."

Sakura was shocked. "Two weeks?!"

"Yes, you see we will be traveling in a caravan of five people by foot and the prince is very…shall we say, volatile at this tender age." Kakashi explained with secretive humor.

"He's a spoiled rich kid in other words." Sasuke scoffed, flipping wet locks to the side. "I don't have time to spend babysitting some ungrateful brat when I could be training."

Kakashi reached down and pinched Sasuke's pale cheek, much to the boy's chagrin. "Now Sasuke, it's not polite to speak so rudely of our client. Besides, I think you'll be a bit more understanding when you meet the prince."

Sasuke grunted and glared fiery daggers at his sensei, daring him to continue his hold. The sensei let out a gentle chuckle before releasing the boy's reddened check. "I want you three to be ready with all the supplies necessary by tomorrow at dawn. We'll meet at the village gate and we'll be off shortly thereafter."

With that, Kakashi gave each of his students' a soft pat on the head and then disappeared in a puff of grey smoke.

XXXX

Kakashi arrived at the gate promptly before the sun began to peek over the Hokage Mountain. His students had not arrived yet, but they still had a little time yet before they would be considered late. He, however, was greeted by a softly smiling woman who appeared to be in her late twenties with long golden hair piled atop her head in a neat bun.

"Good morning, Hatake-san." The woman greeted politely. "I would like to thank you for taking on this task of escorting us back to our home. It truly is an honor to be handled by the great Copy Ninja of Konoha and the young master's family is truly grateful for your time and effort."

"It's no trouble at all." Kakashi answered with a grin. "It is an honor to be of service to the Akiyama family."

The woman nodded and returned to the carriage which was parked just at the edge of the cracked gates and began conversing with a much older woman. Kakashi took to leaning against the wall and waiting for his young ones to show. Within the hour, they would be headed off to Iwa and would not be returning for some time. Kakashi remembered to the last time he'd been in Iwa, many years ago when he was still on a team with Rin and Obito. It had been a simple escort mission, much like this one, and the journey had been grueling as it had been storming particularly bad in the Land of Fire.

Kakashi glanced up at the skies and noticed only a few stray white puffs floating in the air. The weather was perfect for traveling and he had not heard of any abnormal storms or disasters from any of the scouting groups that had come in just that morning. He was certain this would be a smooth ride for all involved.

"Good morning, Kakashi-Sensei!" Ah, his first pupil had arrived.

"Good morning, Naruto." Kakashi smiled at the approaching, bouncing blonde. "Do you have everything?"

The boy's head bobbed up and down as he nodded and jumped to his sensei's side. "I'm so ready for this mission!" He nearly shouted.

Kakashi threw an arm over Naruto's shoulders and gave him a fond squeeze before returning to his relaxed position against the wall. It didn't take long before his other two students arrived together, both looking rather exhausted with sleep induced hazes and wide yawns.

"My, I do hope you two are awake enough for travel." Kakashi teased, "Even Naruto is alert and ready."

Sakura stiffened at that and straightened her posture. "I-I am!" She stuttered, giving her eyes one final rub before adopting an expression of perfect focus. "I just am not used to being up before the sun."

Sasuke did not excuse his exhaustion and merely yawned before stuffing his hands in either pocket. Kakashi smiled; how very Sasuke-like.

"Are we ready to move out, Hatake-san?" The same young woman who had greeted him earlier approached him once more with her question. "The young master will be waking within a few hours and it would be much easier if we could get some travel done with him sleeping."

Kakashi nodded. "Oh, yes of course. My team is assembled."

The woman nodded and gave a signal wave to the head of the caravan which was returned by a buff looking man who wore a sword attached to his hip. Kakashi could tell the man was not a ninja but little more than an armed body guard. He would not be much help if the caravan were to encounter trouble along the way, not that Kakashi was foreseeing any trouble.

"Where is the Prince?" Sakura inquired as the woman turned back to the group.

The woman gave Sakura a strained smile. "He is sleeping in the carriage with his caregiver. The young master needs all the rest he can considering his condition."

"Condition?"

The woman nodded. "Yes. You see, young master Hirohito was in this village seeking medical care for a heart condition. The doctors in our village are quite skilled, but they have little experience with something of this magnitude. Konoha graciously offered their medical services for our young master and we are forever grateful."

The woman said no more as she hurried over to the carriage and slipped inside, closing the door softly behind her.

"How old is the Prince, Kakshi-Sensei?" Sakura finally asked after the woman had departed.

Kakashi gave Sakura a tiny sad smile before answering. "The young Prince is only two years old."

All three of his students stared at him in awe. The thought of such a young child being subjected to such an unfortunate medical condition was certainly saddening, especially to his little ones who had very limited experiences with medical tragedy.

"We'll have one man on each side of the carriage." Kakashi explained, quickly trying to change the subject. "I'll take the front. Naruto and Sasuke will take the sides and Sakura will bring up the rear. Understood?"

All three gave sharp nods before departing to their assigned positions. Kakshi sighed and took up his position at the head of the caravan, beside the swordsman. This was going to be quite the journey.

XXXX

The first three hours of the journey went by as smoothly as expected. The weather remained calm and gentle and soft breezes shifted around them carrying the scent of newly bloomed wildflowers. All was quiet as they followed the mapped path, a straight shoot to Iwa, and there was little traffic on the main road. They had come across one or two groups of ninja heading home but other than that, the road was void of any life aside from the tiny caravan. However, it seemed rather abrupt and startling when a shrill cry burst from the inner walls of the carriage.

The swordsman, who Kakashi now knew to called Arashi, halted in his controlled steps and whirled around, running to the carriage's side. Kakashi watched with interest as the man knocked insistently on the tinted window.

The door cracked and the panicked screeching of a distressed child leaked out onto the road. Naruto looked absolutely mortified and rather stressed by the awful sound of it, placing a hand over his ear and frowning.

"Is everything alright with the Prince?" Kakashi inquired. "Do we need to stop?"

Arashi nodded at Kakashi and the caravan was halted in the middle of the road. Honestly, it wasn't the most inconspicuous place to take a break but given the nature of the boy's wailing, it seemed that there was no time to pull off into the neighboring forest.

"It would seem the young master is just a tad fussy from being confined for so long. Would it be alright if we took a small break and allowed him to roam around for a bit?" Arashi asked, approaching Kakashi with a look of determination. Kakashi could tell the man was not asking but rather stating this was what they were going to do.

Kakashi gave the man a quick smile through his mask and nodded. "Of course. It must be difficult for the Prince to be stuck in a carriage for so long."

As Arashi began directing the carriage off to the side into a grassy clearing, Naruto approached Kakashi.

"Do we really have time to be stopping like this?" He asked with mild concern. "If we take little breaks like this every few hours, it's just going to make this mission all the more longer."

"The Prince is a baby and you know how babies are. This is, unfortunately, a part of the mission that we just have to deal with." Was Kakashi's swift answer. "Being a shinobi means adapting to situations at a moment's notice, even when unpleasant."

Naruto nodded in understanding and drooped forward, leaning his forehead against his Sensei's chest and sighing. "This is going to be a long mission."

Kakashi chuckled and ran soft fingers through the boy's hair; it acted as a soother for both of them.

XXXX

As it turned out, the young Prince was actually quite the bubbly little fellow once he was allowed out of his cramped prison and into the warm grass, despite his tragic screeching just a few minutes earlier.

The boy was a chubby ball of life, having not quite lost all his baby fat from his non-walking years, with a tiny button nose and adorable pink cheeks that just called for one to squeeze them. The boy had a mop of mussed brown fluff on his head that resembled somewhat of a haystack to Kakashi but he supposed it was near impossible to keep young children in constant pristine condition. He remembered his own youth and how his own father had scolded him on many occasions to keep his hair brushed and clothes unwrinkled. The scolding didn't last long though once his father saw that Kakashi, and most children, just couldn't resist the temptation of a fresh rain puddle or a dirty stray animal.

"He's adorable!" Sakura had squealed when the boy had toddled over to her and fell into her lap with a gurgle.

The boy's caretaker, an older woman who may well have possibly been a distant relative, smiled at Sakura with pride. "Thank you."

Sakura lifted the boy up by his underarms and set him down between her legs where he took a sudden interest in a ladybug crawling up a blade of grass. Sakura lowered her finger and allowed the creature to crawl onto it as she raised it up to the boy's astonished eyes. He let out a string of childish squeals and giggles.

Sasuke and Naruto appeared to be far less impressed with the child as they both strayed off a few feet to the side and took to meditating beneath a tree. Kakashi supposed he couldn't blame them, it seemed women had a natural affinity with children, even ones that did not belong to them, so it was of no surprise to him when Sakura pedaled over to the little boy and both his male charges had wandered off.

Kana, as Kakashi now knew the younger woman's name to be, approached him with a kindly smile. "We'll just rest for a half hour or so before continuing on. By nightfall, we should reach a small tourist village where the Akiyama family has made arrangements for our caravan at a local inn."

Kakashi was taken aback. Very rarely did clients ever provide sleeping arrangements for their escorts or even really show any concern for the ninja who served under them. Kakashi had been fully prepared for a night under the stars with his students snuggled against him for warmth.

"That is very generous of the Akiyama family." Kakashi thanked graciously. "We could have made do with the ground. The air has been relatively warm the past few nights."

Kana giggled in that way that made Kakashi blanch with distaste. It was the way Rin used to and many of the other girls would giggle at him in Konoha when they began showing an interest. He would have to distance himself from the woman or possibly risk being lavished with unwanted attention. He had to be professional around the young ones and especially on such a diplomatic mission. Not that he'd ever considered it even if he was off the clock. Kana was soft, in all senses of the word, and definitely not his type.

"It was no trouble. We will come across many tourist villages along the way and the Akiyama family did not see any reason for our escorts to be uncomfortable." Kana fluttered her eyelashes at him and turned away, her hips giving an unnecessary swirl as she sashayed away.

Kakashi sighed, shaking his head, determined to flush the image from his mind. The woman was inexperienced, judging by the outrageous way in which she swung her hips and puckered her thin lips.

"Kakashi-sensei, come see!" Sakura called the man's attention away from those eternally swaying hips.

Sakura was currently cuddling the gurgling babe in her arms and laying a soft kiss on his forehead. The boy gave a delighted squeal and reached up, patting her cheek. She laughed in a way that Kakashi had never really heard her laugh before. Sakura was generally very reserved around him and her male teammates. He suspected it had something to do with an offhanded comment Sasuke had made a few weeks back about "noisy girls" grating on his nerves. While the two boys may not have taken notice, the pursed lips and crinkled brow did not escape Kakashi's sharp eye. It seemed however, that Sakura's weakness was the undeniable cuteness of young children; letting down her guard and allowing her tinkling laugh to fill the air.

Kakashi obliged the girl's request and kneeled down beside her in the grass, tinkling the chubby child's chin. "He's very cute." Kakashi admitted.

Sakura blew a raspberry on the boy's cheek and squeezed him in a way that may possibly be bordering on uncomfortable, though the child seemed not to mind in the slightest.

Sasuke and Naruto had both seemed to gradually shift closer to Sakura, both attempting to inconspicuously glance her way with soft, almost unnoticeable, pink cheeks. Kakashi almost chuckled at the sight. Naruto did nothing to hide his apparent crush on the female of the group but Sasuke was very determined to keep any emotions directed at the opposite sex suppressed and ignored. Both the boys were at that age though where anything with a few curves or long hair looked appealing to them. Kakashi certainly hoped he wouldn't be having a "talk" with them anytime soon.

Naruto took this opportunity to crouch down beside Sakura and give her a blinding smile. "You're really good with kids, Sakura." He complimented. "You'll make a great mom someday."

Sakura's pale cheeks heated with a subtle blush as she turned back to the child and gave him an indulgent bounce when his arms started to flail from her diverted attention.

"Thanks." Was her nearly inaudible whisper.

XXXX

The brief afternoon break lasted only roughly thirty minutes before Arashi, the bulky body guard, insisted that they move on.

"We've already been stationary for too long." He panicked softly to Kakashi as Kana assisted in loading up the butter ball of a Prince. "By this time, anyone could have seen us and passed on our location."

Kakashi knew the man wasn't qualified to make such calls and he also knew that such a threat was highly unlikely. The Prince's birth had not been announced, unlike the three elder children, due to his poor health and as such, any enemy ninja having knowledge of the Prince was probably impossible. Besides, Kakashi knew that very few enemies would bother with the fourth child. The boy would offer very little in terms of a ransom payment, if he provided one at all.

"Yes, let us take our leave then." Kakashi reluctantly agreed with the man. He didn't appreciate the way in which Arashi had taken it upon himself to lead the escort. He was likely in search of a promotion or pay raise from the Akiyama family. Pathetic.

The rest of the day passed in relative peace and silence. They did stop once more in a warm field filled with wild flowers and enjoyed a very short lunch. Kakashi could see his team becoming fatigued and tired. He supposed he couldn't blame them, after all. They were still very young and needed their sleep.

It was a bit of a blessing when the caravan finally reached the tiny tourist village.

"I'm afraid the Akiyama family was only able to book one bed for you, Hatake-san." Kana apologized once they arrived at the inn. "I'm sure we can arrange for an extra futon to be brought up though."

"One room?!" Naruto blurted in horror. "I am not sharing a room with this asshole." Naruto pointing his finger accusingly at his rival.

Sasuke scoffed and turned his head away, lower lip jutting out. "I refuse to share sleeping space with this idiot."

Sakura gave them each a well-earned smack across the head and bowed deeply. "I apologize for their insolence." She cried. "Please forgive them."

Kana waved off the comments. "It's quite alright. I understand it will be a tad cramped but the bed is large enough for three."

There was an awkward pause as the three teammates met each other's gazes, fully coming to understand what the woman was suggesting.

Sakura blushed and both Sasuke and Naruto seemed horrified. Kakashi took the situation into his own hands.

"Thank you so much for your generosity. We will gladly accept."

Ignoring the three identical expressions of aghast, Kakashi entered the inn with a cunning smile.

XXXX

"I am not sharing a bed with the asshole!" Naruto stated the second the four of them entered the room.

It was a modest sized room with a relatively comfortable looking bed, a nightstand adorning each side, and a box TV resting atop a dresser at the head. There was a small balcony which overlooked some neighboring rice paddy fields which gave a cloud serenity around the simple town.

"And you think I want to share my sleeping space with you?" Sasuke growled in irritation as he sized up the bed. "It's bad enough we're stuck with each other for two weeks."

Kakashi instantly cut the argument short as the sky outside was already painted a deep black. "Enough. You'll share the bed and I don't want to hear anymore about it. You should be grateful that the Akiyama family went to all the trouble of getting us a room. You'll learn soon enough that most clients are not as thoughtful."

Sasuke and Naruto, both thoroughly chastened, slipped out of their sandals and shuffled into the adjoining bathroom to wash up. A day of walking on dirt paved roads had left a thick layer of dust caked on their feet. Sakura had already groomed herself while the boys had been arguing, now rubbing some very distinct blisters forming on her heels.

"I have some salve for that." Kakashi said, pulling a tiny plastic container from his backpack. "It should keep the pain to a minimum."

Sakura thanked him with a smile and added a generous amount to the angry red bulges. After quickly wrapping them with some medical gauze, the boys returned to the main room, both looking rather "peeved".

"If you think for one damned minute I'm just going to forget what happened in there…" Sasuke growled through clenched teeth. "You are sorely mistaken. You are so immature!"

Kakashi couldn't help but notice the very prominent damp stain on the boy's shorts. The sensei sighed and motioned for the children to climb into bed.

"Alright now, enough nonsense. It's time for bed. We have an early start in a few hours and I don't want you three yawning all throughout the day."

The three adolescents ambled around a few more seconds before reluctantly crawling into the bed, strategically placing each other in a neat row with Sasuke in between both Sakura and Sasuke. Apparently both boys found it a bit inappropriate for the young lady of their group to be sandwiched between her two male teammates. Honestly, Kakashi didn't find it bothersome. As a ninja, you were forced into many uncomfortable situations, including having to share beds with the opposite gender.

After insuring that his charges were snugly tucked in with a strict warning not to leave the room without first informing him, he slid into the spare futon and closed his eyes, listening to the rustling of bed sheets and subsequent soft puffs of breath from the three children, all seemingly having fallen into a restful sleep.

Finally, Kakashi was able to slip into his own light slumber.

XXXX

Some time later in the night, Kakashi was alerted to movement and muted whispers echoing across the room from a not so distant bed. Ears now perked, he listened intently.

"Idiot, are you crying?" Puny sniffles were the raven's only response. "What's wrong? Have a nightmare?" To any outsider, Sasuke's tone was mocking in nature and almost bordering on cruel but Kakashi could hear the faint, well-hidden, concern.

"S-shut up, you d-damn jerk." High pitched and insanely whiny in sound, Naruto sniffed again and evidently threw himself over, turning away from his rival.

"What was it about?" Sasuke inquired, honestly appearing curious. "Goodness knows an idiot like you couldn't dream up anything too terrifying."

"Go back t-to sleep." Naruto demanded, embarrassment leaking through his carefully crafted shell. "J-Just forget this even happened. Don't tell Sakura."

"I'm not going to tell her anything though I'm surprised you haven't woken her up with all your blubbering." Sasuke chuckled warmly. "Seriously though, what was your dream about?"

Naruto, mildly offended by the blubbering comment, huffed hotly snapped, "Why do you care anyway? Are you planning to use this as blackmail or something? That'd be just the kind of underhanded thing that an asshole like you would do."

Sasuke bristled at the heated insult. "I would not! You're not the only one who suffers from nightmares, you know!"

There was a pause in the banter before Naruto finally found a voice. "What do you dream about?"

Sasuke was quiet and for a moment it seemed that the boy was determined not to answer but finally, he did. "My family...mostly." He added hesitantly "Amongst other things."

"Like what?" Naruto prodded.

"I asked first, idiot." Sasuke hissed.

Naruto sighed, seemingly defeated. "I don't really know. There was a lot of screaming and red. I didn't see much just...there was a woman." He added as if suddenly remembering, as if the dream was flooding back into his mind. "She was really pretty and she had long red hair. I don't think I've ever seen her before but she seemed familiar for some reason."

"Maybe you've seen her around the village?" Sasuke suggested.

"I don't think so…" Naruto trailed off, his voice beginning to slur with sleep. "I've never seen anyone with...with hair as red as hers."

"There aren't a lot of people with red hair in Konoha." Sasuke admitted. "Maybe you saw her on a mission in another village."

"Maybe…" Naruto's voice was becoming thick like syrup. "But she...she was screaming."

"Why?"

"I don't know...but it sounded horrible; like she was dying or something." His voice was haunted with the phantom screams of the strange woman he'd seen in his dreams. Naruto knew he'd never seen her before, as Sasuke had said, red headed people were rare in Konoha. But perhaps he'd passed her on the street in another village? That would make sense. But why...why was she screaming so awfully?

Kakashi lay on the floor in complete silence, not giving even the slightest hint that he was awake or had heard the entire conversation. The boys seemed to have both slipped back into a natural sleep easily after the brief exchange. Kakashi hadn't a doubt in his mind that both would deny the dialogue come morning.

Naruto's dream nagged at Kakashi however. He knew perfecting well the woman that Naruto had dreamt about. Kushina. The name caused his heart to lurch and he turned over in his futon, facing the away from the sleeping Genin. Naruto had been less than a day old when his birth parents had both passed on from this world. The chances of Naruto having any memory of either of them was essentially zero. But perhaps...perhaps the Kyuubi within him did. Kakashi had been debriefed on Naruto's situation by the Third Hokage when he'd first been assigned as the boy's mentor. While the two were not yet at a stage where communication could be established, it was very possible that the Kyuubi's own conscious and memories were melding with Naruto's. It would not be unheard of for a Jinchuriki.

For now, Kakashi was determined not to overly concern himself with it. There was a mission to be done and Naruto's nightmares were, unfortunately, not paramount. He would have a private discussion with the boy if such dreams persisted. For now, he was forced to write them off as nothing more than the sad longing for a mother experienced by a parentless child.

Kakashi cursed the ninja mentality that he still clung to and closed his eyes in frustration. The Jonin did not get another ounce of sleep that night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It is the long awaited second chapter! Yaya! I hope you're all as excited as I am to see this FINALLY posted and ready for reading. It's thanks to you all that I even decided to continue this fic so I would just like to thank you all so much for all your lovely comments and favorites. I never thought so many people would actually like this simple one-shot so much that they would request it to be continued. Now there are just over 100 favorites and that is far more than I could have ever expected, thank you all so much!
> 
> Now, onto what most of you care about…update schedule. Against my better judgment, I have decided to just release chapters whenever they are finished. My current goal is one every two weeks but wither or not that will actually happen is completely and utterly up in the air. I'm not PROMISING a chapter bi-weekly, just that I will TRY. I only have a rough idea of what the next few chapters will contain (and I do mean rough). If you please bear with the long intervals between chapters, I do promise they will match this one in length. Chapters will be long (or as long as I can make them given the content).
> 
> Now, this AN has dragged on long enough and half of you probably aren't even reading it but if you are still reading than I just want to give one more huge shout out to you and hope that you will continue with me on this journey, no matter how long or short it may be.
> 
> Until next time, lovelies! ^_^


	3. Mission: Escort (Part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unbeta'd for now, please excuse any typos!  
> I changed my penname to IcyFantastique. Don't panic ;)

The morning sun rose far too soon for Kakashi’s liking as he lay awake through the dark hours of the night. He watched as the fiery ball teased him with it’s yellow rays and subtle warmth leaking through the window. Turning over, Kakashi was just barely able to peer over the edge of the bed and see his sleeping students still breathing softly in little lumps buried under a pile of blankets. Reluctantly, the Jonin rose from his resting place and glanced over at the students.

“Oh, how adorable.” He cooed at the sight.

Before him, his three little students were curled together, snuggled like small pups. Sasuke’s arm was tossed lazily over Naruto’s chest, head nestled tight against the blonde’s neck as if snuggling with some human sized stuffed animal. Sakura was pressed against the raven’s back, her petal pink hair mussed and covering her face, a trail of drool creeping down her chin.

Kakashi decided to take advantage of this glorious situation. Leaning downward with a conniving smirk, he delivered a firm poke to each of the sleeping children’s cheeks and chuckled as each face gave an adorable scrunch and emitted a tired groan.

“Time to wake up.” Kakashi practically sang; he couldn’t recall the last time his voice had sounded so jolly, the pitch in itself resonating brightly in his ears.

Sasuke was the first to allow his eyes to slide open, black orbs foggy with sleep. The boy licked his dry lips and gave a blink or two before finally realizing his very compromising position, feeling the pressure and warmth of his female teammate fixed to his back, as realization seemed to leak into his eyes he also seemed to take notice where his arm had been tossed.

“W-what?!” He cried, eyes widening.

“Five more minutes, Kakashi-sensei.” Naruto whined, rolling over.

Sakura’s emerald gem-like eyes popped open one at a time and she gave a sweet sniffle and brushed the back of her hand over her mouth, wiping away any evidence of her nightly habit. The girl blinked and a hot blush swept over her face as she adorably reeled back away from her handsome teammate.

“Don’t dawdle.” Kakashi swiftly informed, buckling his sandals with nimble fingers. “We want to get on the road as soon as possible, before lots of traffic hits. The more inconspicuous we are, the less nagging I’ll have to listen to.” He added a bit sour, thinking back on that Arashi fellow.

Without looking back to make sure the Genin were doing as he said, Kakashi exited the room and made his way to the front entrance where most of the caravan was already waiting. Prince Hirohito was bundled in a soft downy blanketed to bate off the brisk chill of the morning and was cradled in Kana’s arms, suckling on his thumb and clearly still fast asleep. Kakashi grinned at the sight before he felt his arm grabbed.  
Arashi had a deep frown etched into his face, not something at all surprising to the Jonin.

“We should have already been on our way a half hour ago, Kakashi-san.” The man spit the honorific as if it were distasteful poison. “The sun has begun to rise and surely there will be plenty of ninja already clamouring around the main roads looking for easy targets.”

Kakashi turned on his heels, successfully disengaging the man’s grip on him and faced Arashi with an encouraging smile. “I assure you, Arashi-san, that we are no easy target. However, should someone be foolish enough to try and attack, I assure you that myself and my team will handle them. No harm shall come to the Prince.”

Arashi’s eyes darted over the slumbering toddler and his lips puckered in a most odd manner that Kakashi could not quite describe. “Yes, of course. The Prince’s safety is of the utmost importance. But I’m sure you understand, Kakashi-san,” the man trailed off before continuing in a hushed tone. “That this caravan holds more than just one precious treasure.”

Before Kakashi was able to question what the man meant, Arashi speedily escaped and returned to the group, striking a rather forced conversation with an older woman concerning her aching back muscles. Kakashi watched the man as he spoke animatedly but with little interest. He knew this man’s type as he had faced many enemies like him in his past. His time in ANBU had made him a pro at sniffing out people like him; a wolf in sheeps’ clothing.

XXXX

The caravan traveled with relative peace for the next week, passing through lands of sweltering heat and bitter cold as they made their way through the mapped path to their destination. The genin traveled with little complaint and mostly kept to themselves, except on the occasions when a small break was necessary for the young prince, then they became the most precious things Kakashi had ever laid eyes on. Sasuke and Naruto had warmed up to the idea of a dribbling toddler waddling around them and entertained the lad with ease alongside Sakura and the boy’s ever diligent nanny.

It wasn’t until one brisk evening after the group had passed through a particularly rough bout of rocky terrain, that the easily maintained peace began to crumble like sand. It wasn’t at all a surprise to Kakashi, in retrospect, the signs had been there and he should have been more watchful when it came to the suspicious character that was Arashi.

The caravan had settled among a grouping of large boulders, shielding them from the harsh winds that blew through the rocky valley that night. They had set up thick tents and borrowed warm blankets to the ninja, much to the squad’s relief that they would not have to bear the night’s cold with their thin field sheets; the cheese cloth material was light and easy to travel with but it hardly provided enough coverage in a blustery valley.

“We should reach the village ahead of schedule.” Kakashi briefed Arashi as the remainder of the caravan settled down for sleep in their tents.

Kakashi watched with an amused eye as Naruto poked Sasuke’s pale cheek, snickering mischievously when the raven batted the prodding finger away with a frown. Sasuke had seemed rather fatigued that day, appearing more cranky than usual when roused from sleep earlier that morning, and his cheeks had been colored bright pink throughout their hike in the valley. Although such a thing could be explained away by the strong winds. Kakashi would keep a close eye on him come the next few days. A sick ninja on the field was as useless as a dead one, as cruel as that sounded. Once they reached the village, Kakashi would have the boy visit a medical ninja, as much as he was sure the child would argue and fume over such a preventative action.

Arashi’s snide voice called Kakashi’s attention back to the point at hand. “We should take the detour through the neighboring rock canyon. The wind is slowing us down immensely and the prince’s health is delicate at this stage in his recovery.”

Kakashi eyed the map that Arashi had presented him with and saw that the detour had already been marked with red paint. “Such a detour would be unnecessary, Arashi-san. The wind should die down once we’ve reached the edge of the valley tomorrow. Another mile or so and we will be back to flat lands which will alleviate the winds.”

Arashi’s eyes flashed dangerously and Kakashi felt his back stiffen at the sight. What was this man attempting to accomplish by distracting them with such ridiculous “short-cuts”? It didn’t make sense.

“Yes, of course.” Arashi growled, anger evident in his voice. “I forgot. Regardless, we should attempt to hurry our pace along. I know the Lord and Lady are expecting their son back soon.”

“I’m sure it will be a nice surprise for them both when we arrive earlier than expected.” Kakashi ended the conversation with a brisk “good-night” and returned to his dazed genin huddled near a large boulder.

“Kakashi-sensei,” Sasuke whined, Kakashi had almost mistaken the childish summons for Naruto. “I’m cold.”

Kakashi saw the boy was shivering beneath his wool blanket and field sheet, indeed the boy was sick by the looks of those flushed cheeks and chapped lips. Kakshi laid his palm down against the Uchiha’s forehead and hissed at the burning heat; poor boy must have had that fever festering for the entire day but had chosen to stay silent.

“Silly raven,” Kakashi practically cooed softly. “You need to tell me when something is wrong so I can help you.”

Sasuke scoffed, stubborn even in his fevered state and rolled away from his teammates who watched with curious eyes. Sakura appeared worried, brow furrowed and fingers interlocked as if she were saying a prayer. She kneeled beside him and brought a damp cloth over, wiping his forehead with it.

“I tried to tell him that he should let you know, Kakashi-sensei.” Sakura insisted as if she were avoiding a tongue lashing for keeping quiet. “But he said it was just a head cold and that I should mind my own business.”

Naruto laughed but it wasn’t cruel in nature, merely something that could be akin to a nervous habit. “That’s just like the prick to get sick on us and then be all hush-hush about it until he can’t even move.”

Sakura tossed a glare at her blonde teammate and Kakashi just sighed, not entirely disagreeing with the rambunctious boy.

“Yes, well there’s no use in arguing over it now, is there?” Kakashi settled the debate when he noticed Sasuke shift uncomfortably beneath his blankets. “Sakura, Naruto, you two get to sleep and rest. With Sasuke out of commission I’ll need you to pick up the slack.” Kakashi patted Sakura’s petal pink hair when the girl gave him a wide eyed gaze filled with concern. “I’ll take care of Sasuke, don’t you worry.”

The girl nodded and crawled over to her designated sleeping area where she had crafted a neat nest for herself right beside Naruto’s disorganized pile of linens and luggage.

Naruto locked his gaze upon Sasuke for a moment more before saying with subtle affection. “Don’t worry, asshole. I’ll fill in for you until you’re back on your feet.” The blonde gave a cocky smile before adding. “But don’t get used to it!”

Sasuke’s lips turned up into a barely noticeable grin.

XXXX

The night was hard and long. While Kakashi had hoped that sleep would cure the raven of his fever, it seemed to only worsen his condition. The boy shivered violently through the night and Kakashi had surrendered his own blanket to the child without a second thought, cocooning him like a sad caterpillar in the extra wool. It seemed to do little in regards to the boy’s comfort.

Sasuke tossed and turned and woke up several times through the night whimpering and calling for “nii-san” before falling back into a fitful sleep. Kakashi stayed up and watched the boy, rubbing his back when a coughing fit would arise and soothing him back to sleep with soft words when it seemed he was on the verge of tears. Kakashi didn’t know what more to do. He felt completely helpless for the first time since he had gained his little genin and he didn’t understand how to comfort an ailing child, although Sasuke seemed to accept his gentle words and backrubs easily enough. This small reassurance did very little to comfort him as the raven continued to moan and toss about for the remainder of the night.

As the sun rose over the horizon, lighting up the small valley with its ever blinding rays of sunshine, Kakashi swept his hand over the boy’s brow. The fever had indeed gone down as the child had rode it out through the night but a dull heat still remained and Sasuke’s breath came with difficulty. The genin was in no shape to perform his shinobi duties and Kakashi was prepared to handle the situation accordingly.

  
Arashi was already awake and preparing a light meal for himself when Kakashi approached him. “One of my genin has fallen ill and is in no condition to perform his duties today.” Kakashi explained blandly, though he hardly felt that he owed anything to the man. “My other two squad members will be picking up the slack and monitoring their teammates abandoned post along with their own. However, I believe that detour you mentioned may be useful in this situation.” Kakashi was loath to admit that the rat of a man had actually suggested something worth noting. It was true that the canyon was possessed rough terrain but it was a shorter route compared the winding valley they traveled now. Kakashi wanted to have Sasuke examined as quickly as possible and out of the harsh conditions of nature.

Arashi’s mouth curved into a sly smile and he patted Kakashi on the shoulder as if the two were old pals. “I knew you would come to see the sense in my route. We’ll be back in Iwa before the week is half over.”

  
Arashi meandered off to explain the new travel route to the others of the caravan while Kakashi gave the man a hard glare.

XXXX

Traveling with a sick Uchiha was something that Kakashi had never been privileged to and hoped to never be again. Sasuke was a whiny child when ill and the fact that he was in the presence of strangers and even his own teammates did little to curb his moans of misery.

“Kakashi-sensei,” Sasuke groaned for the fifth time in the last hour, “I am so thirsty.”

Kakashi sighed and lifted his water canteen over his shoulder, feeding it to the Uchiha. The boy slurped at it hungrily and licked his lips in satisfaction after he was sated.  
Kakashi was used to hauling around pounds of luggage during his missions so allowing his tiny pupil to ride on his back for a few miles hardly seemed to be much different. The key point that Kakashi forgot to factor in was that luggage did not speak.

Readjusting the raven on his back and giving the boy a firm pat on his thigh, Kakashi continued down the rocky gravel path that led into the canyon. The canyons of Iwa were a magnificent sight, something that Kakashi had always found time to be awed with even during his missions as an ANBU.

“These are some huge rocks!” Naruto squealed as he took in the grand rock walls of the Iwa canyons. “Iruka-sensei told me once that back in the old days, villages would have competitions to see who could climb the highest without chakra; lots of people died from falling because they’d been climbing for hours. I thought he was just kidding but wow!”

Kakashi smiled at the blonde’s enthusiasm and Iruka’s little story. “Such a tradition is still widespread in Iwa, Naruto.” Kakashi explained. “Many ninja come here to test their physical strength after they’ve graduated from the academy to see if they are really shinobi material. I knew one Iwa squad leader who made his entire team climb these mountains for days as punishment after failing a mission.”

Naruto’s blue eyes widened with a hint of worry as he took in the magnificent sight of the Iwa canyon. “Y-you wouldn’t do that to us, right? I mean, even if we failed a mission, you wouldn’t make us climb dangerous mountains for days, right Kakashi-sensei?”

Kakashi considered teasing the blonde that he absolutely would, but the boy seemed legitimately concerned. Kakashi could never imagine being so cruel to his little pupils and instantly put such monstrous thoughts to rest. “Of course not. Who would I treat to dinner every night if you three were out climbing rocks all day?”

Naruto smiled softly and went back to quietly admiring the natural scenes.

XXXX

By midafternoon, Sasuke’s health seemed to improve. His fever had mostly diminished to nothing but a warm buzz, however the boy still claimed to have bouts of dizziness and nausea. When it came time to rest and allow the prince to roam about freely for a bit, Kakashi tucked Sasuke under a blanket with strict orders to take a nap and not move around.

“You’re fever will return if you start running around.” Kakashi informed after he received a rather heated glare from the boy. “If you don’t want to be sitting out of missions for the next two weeks while you recover, you’ll do as I say and stay under those blankets.”

Sasuke pouted silently while Kakashi returned to his other two charges kneeling in the dirt and tickling the prince’s bare feet.

“I’m going to go scout out the area ahead. You two are in charge until I return.” Kakashi informed them seriously before adding humorously. “Do be sure that Sasuke stays where I put him and that he doesn’t try to escape.”

Naruto slauted Kakashi and grinned devilishly. “Don’t worry, Kakashi-sensei! I’ll make sure the asshole doesn’t go anywhere.”

Sakura gave the blonde a sharp smack to the head and scolding look for his language, quickly returning to her games with the prince and pinching the babe’s pudgy toes.

Kakashi sighed and hopped away to scout out the area, completely unaware of the fact that Arashi had wandered off.

XXXX

“Peek-a-boo!” Sakura giggled as the baby in her lap squealed with childish laughter. “Peek-a-boo!”

Naruto lay on his belly beside his female teammate and watched as the charming girl elicited warm bubbles of laughter from the tiny boy. He was mesmerized by the girl’s motherly instincts and gentle personality when around children.

“You’re so good with him, Sakura.” Naruto noted with clear admiration.

Sakura, as she had before, blushed and gave Hirohito a tickle on his belly. “I used to go with my mom when she would volunteer at the nursery in the hospital. A lot of the babies were newborns so I wasn’t allowed to play with them or go near them but I would help entertain the toddlers in the daycare center.” Sakura explained. “A lot of them were children of the doctors and nurses so I would help take care of them while their parents worked their shifts.”

Naruto nodded along as he listened to Sakura tell stories of her time at the hospital and they joy she got out of helping care for the children. “Maybe you should be a teacher at the academy, Sakura.” Naruto suggested after listening for some time. “You could teach the younger kids and I’m sure you’d be great at it!”

Sakura blushed, “You really think so?”

“Sure! You’re really patient with kids and you like to have fun with them, just like Iruka-sensei. I think you’d be a great teacher!”

Sakura smiled kindly at her blonde teammate and felt a warmth grow insider her heart that she didn’t know was possible when it came to the obnoxious boy. “Thanks, Naruto.”

XXXX

“Do you have the merchandise?” An unseen voice drifted from the darkness of a deep cave about two miles from the where the caravan had parked for its afternoon break.

Arashi stood tall just on the inner lip of the cave and peered inside, seeing nothing but blackness and feeling an unusual coldness seep out. He couldn’t help but think perhaps this had been a mistake. He was, after all, fooling the famous Copy Ninja of Konoha.

“I have it right here.” Arashi held up a plain looking sack in front of him to the invisible entity. “Everything we agreed on is inside.”

“Good, very good.” The voice purred. A long, skinny, gray arm reached out from the shadows of the cave and grasped the sack and its contents, ripping it away from Arashi’s grip. “You may go now, you have completed your task.”

Arashi paused and stamped his foot as if he were an disobedient child. “Now wait just a minute! I gave you what you asked for and now I believe you owe me something for going to all the trouble of doing so.”

The voice cackled and echoed inside the darkness of the cave, causing Arashi to step back and squint, attempting to see some evidence of a being shrouded in the dark. Still he saw nothing.

“I promised you no such thing, boy. Now go, before I claim your life as well as my treasures.”

Arashi was mildly frightened by the idea of an invisible foe but he would not back down. “I had to convince the famous Copy Ninja of Konoha to take this route so I could deliver these goods to you and I demand some form of payment for my troubles!”

The ominous voice ceased in its cackling with a sharpness that frightened Arashi farm more than the eeriness of the voice which once more flowed from the cave’s mouth. “Did you say, Copy Ninja?”

Arashi, determined to seek out payment, practically gloated. “Indeed, I did! The man is as stubborn as a mule and I highly suspect he had his doubts about my purpose in this caravan. Despite his time in ANBU though, it seems that did little to sharpen his skills. He didn’t even notice that I’d slipped away.”

There was silence on the other end and for a moment, Arashi feared that the person had left with his valuables. However, the voice returned sounding desperate and with a calm fury that was frightful to hear.

“Take me to Kakashi Hatake and I will see that you receive the proper payment.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good lord, has it truly been so long since my last update?! I apologize! Honestly, it feels like maybe a month has gone by, not 5!
> 
> Anyway, I tried to make this one long and juicy with fluff for you guys to make up for the ridiculously long wait you all had to endure. I had originally intended to make this "arc" only two parts but it appears that with all the added Team 7 fluff, this will be extending to 3 parts (I'm sure none of you mind though)
> 
> I just want to thank you all for your kind comments, they mean so much to me and encourage me to write. Also, thank you so much for all the bookmarks!
> 
> I hope to see you all real soon! Farewell for now Lovelies! ~

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback of any kind is always appreciated :)


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